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Sunday, July 22, 2012

KOREAN SHOWS: Cha Jiyeon on "The Immortal Songs"

불후의명곡:차지연

I wasn't a regular viewer of KBS'sBulhu-e Myeonggok (불후의명곡, "The
Immortal Songs) but lately, I started watching it regularly to see Sunggyu (of
Infinite) and Hong Gyeongmin, who I think is one of the most underrated singers
in Korea. And it was a pleasant surprise that I stumbled upon Cha Jiyeon
while watching the show yesterday. Cha is a musical theater actress and
singer – she’s also aPansorisinger. She made her debut
playing the role of Rafiki in "The Lion King" in 2007 and some of her
previous musical theater credits include: Maria in Maria, Maria (2007), Effie
White in Dreamgirls (2009), Misil inQueen
Seondeok(2010), Mercedes in
Monte Cristo (2010~2011), and Songhwa inSeopyeonje(2010, 2012). She won the best
new female actress at the 2010 Korea Musical Awards and the best female leading
actress at the 2011 Musical Awards, both for her role in Seopyeonje. Now,
let's first watch her perform the finale ofShimcheonggafeatured in Seopyeonje, as mise en abyme or a play within a play, at the
2011 Musical Awards.

FYI, Shimcheongga
is a story about a girl named Shim Cheong and her father, Shim Hakgyu, who was
blind. Her mother passed away after giving birth to
her. During her infancy, other moms in her neighborhood nursed her; and during her childhood, it was she who cared for her father. She didn’t even bother to
beg for food to support him.

One day, a Buddhist monk happened to rescue her
father from a ditch. There Mr. Shim was told that if he offered three
hundred sacks (approx. 60 tons) of rice to Buddha, his eyes could see. On
impulse, he ended up promising to make an offering. When Cheong
discovered his secret, she willingly sold herself for three hundred sacks of
rice as a virgin sacrifice to the Dragon King of the Sea. The Dragon King
of the Sea was moved by her love for her father so deeply that he ordered to
put her in a giant lotus flower and sent her back to the human world alive.

Cheong, still in
the lotus flower, was taken to the King’s palace and the King immediately fell in love with her and married
her. When the King heard the story of her life, he suggested that she
throw a great banquet for all the blind men of the kingdom in hopes of finding
her father. When Mr. Shim came to the Royal banquet, still blind, he was so
shocked to know Cheong was still alive that he finally regained his sight.

Cha Jiyeon: Shimcheongga (Finale)

As you just saw her in the video above, Cha is a
very talented Pansori singer as she came from a very prestigious family of
traditional Korean musicians including her grandfather on mother's side and her
uncles and aunties. She revealed on KBS’s
“Sketchbook” last year (8/12/2011) that her grandfather on mother's side (the
late Park O-yong) was registered as Ingan Muhwajae (인간문화재, “human cultural
asset”) for his most sublime Pansori skills. But she said her ultimate dream is to be a successful recording artist. (Click to see
her perform and talk on the show.)

Now, here's another video of her singing
"And I Am Telling You, I'm Not Going," a torch song from
the musical Dreamgirls.

Cha Jiyeon: And I Am Telling You, I'm Not Going (Dreamgirls)

Cha is one of the most critically acclaimed performers of the musical theater, however, it was not until last year when she hit the NAGASU stage with Yim Jaebum (or Yim Jaebeom) that she became known to a much wider audience.

Cha Jiyeon & Yim Jaebeom: An Empty Glasson MBC's NAGASU (5/8/2011)

The song Cha chose to sing for “The Immortal
Songs” is Byeori Jindane (별이진다네, “A Star Goes
Down”) by Travel Sketches, one of the most popular 1989 songs in Korea and my
friend Sun’s favorite Noraebang song to sing.
The song is the epitome of analog sound and its lyrics are so
beautifully written:

English Lyrics: A Star Goes Down

Yesterday, a star went down

and my heart sank.

"A star is just a star."

Everyone tells me so but....

Today, another star is going down,

a beautiful star of mine.

When a star goes down, even the sky weeps.

That's why it keeps raining now.

My longing for you
that is gradually soaking my heart

turned into rain
tonight and makes me cry again.

When I look back to
our beautiful old days,

the love of my heart
will come back, it seems.

But as my dream
disappears,

only my sadness
deepens.

As my star disappears,

only the darkness
thickens.

And only the darkness
thickens....

Cha Jiyeon exemplifies the true essence of being a singer. Even though she's got a powerhouse voice, her singing is not all about hitting the high notes. When you hear her sing, you'll hear a range and a great sense of dynamics and control. I hope you like her as much as I do and also hope you enjoy the original version as well as her 21st century
rendition of the song.

1 comment:

Eventhough i just knew her from king of masked singer but now im her fans. Im agree with your point about the way she sing,not about reach highest note but the way she touch my heart with her voice. Thx for your article.